Mortal Kombat X is wonderful. A big, wet, glorious mess, like falling asleep in a fondant shoe then eating your way to freedom. Great news, then, unless you’re a PC owner. While the game runs smoothly on PS4 and Xbox One, the PC port, handled by High Voltage Software, apparently has issues.
It currently has ‘Mostly Positive’ user reviews on Steam, but there are over 1000 negative posts. That’s a lot of sad, red thumbs. Many users saying the same thing; that they love the game, but struggle to play it, even when their PCs meet the minimum requirements:
“Always loved Mortal Kombat games but this is absolute garbage. Computer specs are fine but the frame rate is so low its literally unplayable. Save your money” Streetlamp Le Moose, 4 hours on record
“I recommend staying far away from the PC port of this game and just go get it on console, because the game is amazing and a must have, but the port on PC is so far dreadful.” IgyuJr, 25 hours on record
Part of the problem is that Mortal Kombat X uses a function on Steam which downloads your files gradually as you play. You start with on 3GB download, but have to wait for 29 separate downloads before the entire game is unlocked. Most are small - around 200 - 400MB - but the final download is a whopping 10GB: frustrating for anyone with a weedy internet connection, since the story mode is unavailable until it’s done. On top of this, some outlets are reporting framerate issues during the download. Potentially, that’s a long, miserable wait for a functioning game.
There are other issues, too. Screen tear is a problem even on high end machines, and there’s no option in the menu to alter vsync. Wait, come back! We’ll paraphrase. Without getting too technical, users are having to dig into appdata files in their Steam folders or tinker with their graphics cards, rather than just flicking a switch in the menu. And while it looks glorious during fights, running at a smooth 60fps, it drops to 30fps during cutscenes and those deliciously nasty x-ray moves.
These problems would be bad enough, but there are also reports of numerous crashes and flaky online play. In Warner’s defence, they’ve gifted PC users with a 10,000 koin apology, and we’ve had two patches since release. Will it be enough? At the moment, that seems about as likely as Kano setting up an organic quinoa bar.
